Tracker for automatic musical instruments.



0. S. BURTON.

TRACKER FOR AUTOMATIC MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS.

APPLICATION FILED OUT. 18, 1912.

Patented Aug. 19, 1913.

| l I I i MM fi W QM COLUMBIA PLANDGRAPH co.. WASHINGTON. D c.

O. S. BURTON.

TRACKER FOR AUTOMATIC MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS.

APPLICATION FILED 0GT.18,1912.

1,070,404, Patented Aug. 19, 1913.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2. r

CHARLES S. BURTON, OAK PARK, ILLINOIS.

TRACKER FOR AUTOMATIC MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Aug. 19,1913.

Application filed October 18, 1912. Serial No. 726,469.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, CHARLES S. BURTON, acitizen of the United States, residing at Oak Park, in the county ofCook and State of Illinois, have invented new and useful Improvements inTrackers for Automatic Musical Instruments, of which the follow 1g is aspecification, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forminga part thereof.

The purpose of this invention is to provide an improved construction ofthe tracker for an automatic musical instrument adapted to be employedwith perforated note sheets in which the note perforations of the notesheet are differently spaced, whether the difference is one which iscaused in the original manufacture of the sheets, or is one which arisesor is liable to happen from expansion or contraction of the sheets dueto atmospheric or other changing conditions.

It consists in the elements and features of construction shown anddescribed as indicated in the claims.

In the drawings :-Figure 1 is a front ele vation of a structureembodying this invention, comprising the tracker and roll carriage andthe note sheet rolls therein. Fig. 2 is a section at the line 2-2 onFig. 1. Fig. 3 is a front elevation of one member of the trackerhereinafter referred to as the inner member. Fig. at is a fore-and-aftsection of a structure comprising tracker and roll carriage embodying amodfied form of the invention. Fig. 5 is a section at the line 5-43 onFig. l. Fig. 6 is a fore-end-aft section of another modified form of theinvention.

In the structure shown in the drawings, 1, 1 are the side brackets orchecks of the frame structure in which the tracker and note-sheet rollor spool and the take-up roll are mounted, commonly called the rollcarriage or tracker frame. The note-sheet roll or spool is representedat 2. The take-up roll. is represented at 3.

4; is the note sheet.

The form shown in Figs. 1, 2 and 3, will be first described, The trackercomprises two members, an inner member, 5, which is exteriorlysemi-cylindrical and is mounted for rocking about the axis of itscylindrical outer surface. This member has grooves, 6, for air channelsextending through a limited arc of the cylindrical surface. Thesegrooves starting at a longitudinal line, m, m,

are spaced from each other at uniform distances from center to center,corresponding to the spacing of the perforations on the note sheetshaving such perforations most closely spaced of any designed tocooperate with the tracker, taking into account the maximum shrinkage,or the shrinkage to the narrowest dimension to which such note sheetsare liable. As well understood at the present time, perforated notesheets are cut" with the lines of apertures spaced one-ninth of an inchfrom center to center, and the paper is liable to slight shrinkage andexpansion from this standard dimension to the extent of usually not toexceed 3 of one per cent. of the width shrinkage and a like amount ofexpansion; and making allowance for shrinkage and expansion, the spacingof the grooves, 6, at the line, m, m, is designed to be about of one percent. less than one-ninth of an inch. From said line, at, m, the groovesdiverge through the arc of their extent around the surface of thetracker member, 5, their extent and divergence being such that at theother end of the are they are spaced about of one per cent. aboveone-ninth of an inch apart. The divergence, it will be understood, istherefore sufficient to accommodate the shrinkage and expansion from thestandard spacing of oneninth of an inch, that being the spacing of thegrooves atthe middle of the arc which they occupy in the circumferenceof the cylindrical surface of said inner member, 5. Each of said groovesis perforated with an outlet, 5 at which there is connected a nipple, 5for the attachment of a flexible tube, 5 designed to lead to thepneumatic action not shown. The outlets, 5, and the nipples, 5", arepreferably in a plurality of rows in staggered arrangement for thefamiliar purpose of obtaining adequate space for the nipple connections.The tracker comprises, in addition to the inner member, 5, an outermember, 7, which is a bar having its inner surface concave to fit theexterior cylindrical surface of the inner member, 5, and having saidconcave surface extending through an are somewhat more than twice theextent of the arc in which. the grooves of the inner member extend. At alongitudinal line midway in the width or are or transverse extent of theconcave inner surface of said outer tracker member, 7, said member isprovided with a slot, 7, which, when said outer member is lodged uponthe inner member in operative position, as shown in Fig. 2, crosses orextends transversely with respect to all the grooves, G, of the innermember, 5, the intersection or crossing of the slot with the groovesconstituting the tracker duct months. The note sheet is designed totravel across the tracker between the inner and outer members, 5 and 7,the note-sheet roll and take-up roll, 2 and 3, and is positioned withrespect to the cylindrical surface of said tracker member, 5, so thatthe note sheet will be deflected by said member, 5, and rest upon itover a suflicient area or are thereof to cover the full extent of thegrooves, 6, and preferably will lie upon said cylindrical surface of themember, 5, somewhat beyond the ends of the grooves, 6. The outer trackermember, 7, is mounted so as to be moved bodily toward and away from theinner member, so that the note sheet may be introduced between the twomembers, 5 and 7, and after being thus introduced and connected to thetake-up roll as usual, the member, 7, may be moved up toward the member,5, and against the note sheet lodged and partly wrapped thereon. For sopositioning the outer member, 7, and adapting it to be moved as stated,it is preferably pro-- vided with arms, 8, 8, at its opposite ends,which arms are hinged to the supports in which the inner member, 5, ismounted for rocking, and at such distance from the axis that the saidmember, 7, may be rocked about its pivot so as to afford ample room foreasily manipulating the note sheet in mounting its spool in its bearingsand drawing the end of the note sheet elf the spool over the trackermember, 5, and down to the take-up roll to which the end is connectedfor playing. Preferably, in order that the outer member, 7, may pressthe note sheet closely on to the inner member, 5, so as to preventleakage of air between the two at their surfaces in contact, and at thesame time not so firmly as to prevent the free travel of the note sheetbetween the two tracker members, the said outer member, 7, is providedwith a spring, 9, connecting one of its arms, 8, with a fixed portion ofthe frame, and reacting to press the member, 7, toward the member, 5;and preferably, in order also to hold the member, 7, at the other limitof its swin that is, at the position at which it is to be located whenthe note sheet spool or roll is being placed in position and the notesheet drawn over the tracker member, 5, for connection with the take-uproll, the spring, 9, is connected to the arm, 8, of the member, 7, andto the frame at points so located that the arm-connected end of thespring will be carried past the pivot line of the arms, 8, in swingingthe member, 7, from its position on the member, 5, to its positionremote from that member, so that the spring reacts for holding itsecurely in either position. For the same purpose of adapting the outertracker member, 7, to press against or to ward the inner member, 5,firmly enough to prevent air leakage and not so firmly as to preventnote-sheet travel, the concave face of said outer member, 7, at bothsides of the slot is preferably covered with strips, 12, of softleather, felt or other substance suit able for affording a soft orcushion-like pressure upon the note sheet. The slot, 7, in the member,7, may be only a compara' tively deep groove therein, provided, in thatcase, it extends to the ends, or at least to one end, of said member, 7,so that easy access of air is afforded through the slot or groove to theconcave face of said member, 7, and thereby to the grooves of the innermember, 5, which are crossed by said slot or groove, 7 wherever there isan aperture in the note sheet permitting such communication. In order toavoid making the member, 7, unnecessarily heavy, and at the same time togive it adequate stiffness so that the slot shall have its oppositeedges definitely positioned and not liable to spread apart (a resultwhich is accomplished by making the slot in the form of a moderatelydeep groove, as indicated, extending to the ends without cutting throughthe member, 7, to the opposite or upper surface thereof), I prefer toform the said member, 7, with a plurality of transverse bosses, 7*, atcomparatively short intervals in its length, and to produce this slot bya longitudinal saw-cut extend ing through the concave face and somewhatdeeply into these bosses, cutting entirely through the thickness of themember, 7, intermediate the bosses. In this way, the bosses constitutebridges across the slotand render the member perfectly stiff,notwithstanding it is slotted from end to end. The inner member, 5, isprovided with a lever handle, 10, by means of which it may be rockedthrough an are as great as that occupied by the grooves, (S, and therebythe spacing of the tracker mouths consisting of the crossings orintersections of said inner memher, 5, with the longitudinal slot of theouter member, 7, may be varied from the narrow est spacing of thegrooves at one end to the widest spacing of said grooves at the oppositeends, thus adapting the tracker to be adjusted to correspond to theexpansion and contraction of the note sheets.

In the modification shown in Figs. 4c and 5, the innermember, 5 of thetracker is mounted without provision for rotating about its axis, andthe outer memb r, 7-", is provided with short arms, 11, at its oppositeends extending to the axis of curvature of the inner member, 5, and bymeans of these arms, said outer member, 7*, is pivoted for rocking aboutthe axis of the inner member when lodged in operative position, itspivotal connection for such rocking being made to the ends of leverarms, 12, 12, of a rock shaft, 13, which is mounted in the side cheeksof the roll carrier at a distance from the tracker such that the outermember, 7, carried on the ends of said lever arms, 12, may be swung tothe position shown in dotted line in Fig. at to admit the note-sheetroll or spool to its position. As in the case of the form shown in Figs.1, 2 and 3, a spring, 9, is provided for holding said outer member atone limit or the other of its range of swinging. hen the member, 7 inthis form is in operative position shown in full line in Fig. at, it canbe rocked about its pivotal connection with the arms, 12,that is, aboutthe aXis of curvature of the outer surface of the inner member, 5*, andof the inner face of the outer member, 7 ,-for adjusting thelongitudinal slot, 7 within the range of the transverse slots, 6, of itsinner member for he purpose already described. As illustrated, the innermember, 5, in this form is mounted in the cheeks by means oflongitudinally projecting pins or rods, 14:, 1%, extending into thecheeks so that said inner member may be adjusted longitudinally fortransposition of the music or centering the grooves with respect to thenote sheet perforations. Any convenient means, (none being illustrated,)may be employed for so adjusting the inner member of the trackerlongitudinally.

In Fig. 6, there is shown a further modification. In this form, theinner member, 5 is substantially identical in form with the modificationshown in Figs. a and 5, being mounted and fixed in position in the samemanner. The outer member, T however, instead of being mounted forswinging toward and from the inner member, is provided with springclasps, 7", T, at the ends for engaging the end portion of the innermember beyond the width of the note sheet, these clasps being fitted tothe cylindrical end portion of said inner member so that the outermember may be rocked around the inner member for adjusting thelongitudin al slot of the outer member within the length of thetransverse slots of the inner member. In using this form, the operatorwill detach it from the inner member, the spring clasps permitting thisto be done,when introducing the note sheet over 'he tracker, and willthen apply the outer member by springing the clasps on to the ends ofsaid inner member and adjusting the outer member by rocking it so thatthe longitudinal slotwill cross the transverse slot at proper positioncorresponding to the expansion or contraction of the note sheet.

I claim 2- 1. A tracker device for automatic musical instrumentscomprising a member having a longitudinal slot and a member having a setof surface grooves, one for each note, extending transversely withrespect to the slot of the first member, and having an outlet for eachof said grooves for connection with a pneumatic, the crossings of theslot and grooves constituting the tracker duct mouths, the member havingthe longitudinal slot being mounted for movement bodily toward and awayfrom the member having the transverse grooves, and one of the saidmembers being mounted for movement transversely of said slot.

2. A tracker device for automatic musical instruments comprising amember having a longitudinal slot and a member having a set of surfacegrooves, one for each note, extending transversely with respect to theslot of the first member, and having each an outlet for connection witha pneumatic, whereby the crossings of the slot and grooves constitutetracker duct mouths; the grooved member having its surface curvedcylindrically, the longitudinally slotted member having its slotted facecurved about the same axis and adapted substantially to fit thecylindrical grooved surface of the first member, and mounted forswinging about a line parallel to said axis to move its concave slottedface toward and from the cylindrical surface of the inner member, one ofsaid members being mounted for rocking about the axis of thecylindrically curved surface of the grooved member.

3. A tracker device for an automatic musical instrument comprising amember having a longitudinal slot and a member having a set of surfacegrooves, one for each note, eX- tending transversely to the slot of thefirst member, and each provided with an outlet for communication with apneumatic, the crossings of the slot and grooves constitut ing trackerduct months, the longitudinally slotted member being mounted formovement toward and from the other member, and the two members beingadapted to ad mit, and permit the longitudinal travel of, a note sheetbetween them in contact with both, the slotted member being faced atboth sides of its slot with cushioning material for contact with thenote sheet passing between said members.

f. A tracker device for automatic musical instruments comprising amember having a longitudinal slot and a member having a set of surfacegrooves, one for each note, extending transversely witi respect to theslot of the first member, and provided with outlets for communicationwith a pneumatic, the longitudinally slotted member mounted for swingingabout a line parallel to the slot for moving its slotted face to aposition in contact with and to a position remote from the groovedmember, and a spring connected with said swinging member and with thesupport thereof for reacting upon the swinging member at a point whichis carried past its pivot line by the swinging of said member from oneof said positions to the other, whereby the spring operates to hold itat either limit of its range of swinging movement.

5. A tracker device for automatic musical instruments, comprising amember having a longitudinal slot and. a member having a set of surfacegrooves, one for each note, extending transversely with respect to theslot of the first member and having an outlet for each of said groovesfor connection with a pneumatic, the crossings of the slot and groovesconstituting tracker duct mouths, the member having the longitudinalslot being mounted for movement bodily toward and away from the surfaceof the member having the transverse grooves, and also for movementtransversely to said last mentioned member.

6. A tracker device for automatic musical instruments, comprising amember having a longitudinal slot and a member having a set of surfacegrooves, one for each note, extending transversely with respect to theslot of the first member and having an outlet for each of said groovesfor connection with a pneumatic, the crossings of the slot and groovesconstituting the tracker duct mouths; means upon which the trackermember having the longitudinal slot is carried, mounted for movement ofsaid mem ber bodily toward and away from the other tracker member, theslotted member being mounted on said carrying means for move menttransversely of said other tracker member.

7. A tracker device for automatic musical instruments, comprising amember having a longitudinal slot and a member having a set of surfacegrooves, one for each note, extending transversely with respect to theslot of the first member and having an outlet for each of said groovesfor connection with a pneumatic, the crossings of the slot and groovesconstituting the tracker duct mouths; means hinged at a line parallel tothe longitudinal slot for carrying the tracker member bodily toward andfrom the other tracker member, said slotted tracker member being mountedon said hinged part for movement transversely of said other trackermember.

8. A tracker device for automatic musical instruments, comprising amember having a longitudinal slot and a member having a set of surfacegrooves, one for each note, extending transversely with respect to theslot of the first member and having an outlet for each of said groovesfor connection with a pneumatic, the crossings of the slot and groovesconstituting the tracker duct mouths; the grooved tracker member havingits surface in which the grooves are situated curved cylindrically, theother tracker member having its slotted face curved to lit thecylindrical surface of the first member; a part upon which the slottedtracker member is carried mounted for movement of said slotted membertoward and from the grooved surface of the other member, said slottedmember being pivoted to said carrying means at the axis of curvature ofits said slotted face, whereby it is adapted to be rocked over thecurved face of the grooved member.

9. A tracker device for automatic musical instruments, comprising amember having a longitudinal slot and a member having a set of surfacegrooves, one for each note, extending transversely with respect to theslot of the first member and having an outlet for each of said groovesfor connection with a pneumatic, the crossings of the slot and groovesconstituting the tracker duct mouths; the grooved member having itssurface in which said grooves are located, curved cylindrically, thelongitudinally slotted member having its slotted face concavely curvedabout the same axis; a part which is hinged at a line parallel to thelongitudinal slot of the slotted tracker member having arms to which thesaid slotted member is pivoted at the axis of curvature of its saidconcavely-curved face.

In testimony whereof, I have hereunto set my hand at Chicago, Illinois,this 20th day of September, 1912.

CHARLES S. BURTON.

Witnesses:

M. GERTRUDE Any, LUCY I. STONE.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressingthe Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. C.

